Never use a cloth again!

A new novel, portable ultrasonic universal cleaner developed by Wirral business man, Jonathan Quinn and his team at Hygienic Innovations Ltd has leapt to life through a swift four months of development from concept to prototype.

The cleaner weighs about 1 kilogram when full of water and reportedly zaps a steam wand free of bacteria and grime in about three seconds. The company also stated the wand is effective in cleaning boiler and water dispenser nozzles, beer taps, and more.

Jonathan came up with the idea and noticed the coffee world blind spot after his wife Linzie asked him to buy a latte in a well-known chain and he noticed that the server wiped the milk steam wand with a very dirty cloth after frothing. That happened in November 2016 and within weeks he had set up a company, Hygienic Innovations in his Blockwalls facility in Bromborough & office and lab at University of Chester Thornton science park

The PUCMug works using ultrasonic waves that vibrate at 30,000 times per second this travels through the cold or warm water in the PUCMug. This then maintains cleanliness of the wand inside and out. This is intended to replace and improve upon the practice of using towels, cloths and sponges that only clean the outsides of equipment and potentially become hotbeds of bacteria themselves! The cleaner is lightweight and zaps a steam wand free of milk froth in about 3-5 seconds.

The company also stated the PUCMug is universal device and can be used for watches, jewellery, cosmetic brushes, cleaning boiler and water dispenser nozzles, beer taps, toys and much more.

When asked about the product, Jonathan said "We have been refining the design down and we now have a market-ready product. It takes exactly the same time as wiping the nozzle, a couple of seconds, but crucially it cleans inside and outside, removing all milk residue and other bacteria and dirt."

The company recently won a Merseyside Innovation Award at first attempt. Merseyside Innovation Awards founder Brian McCann said: "The coffee shop market in the UK is massive and continues to grow at an astonishing rate. What makes this so ingenious is its simplicity and ease of use. As soon as this came before the MIA panel we all had the same reaction – brilliant idea. Jonathan has come up with a great product in a short space of time. There are many excellent coffee shops around Liverpool who take hygiene very seriously and it will be interesting to see the market reaction to the product.”

Hygienic Innovations have flew through the development of the product and now have a number of devices out in the coffee shop world being tested and gaining valuable feedback, all of which is positive. Hygienic Innovations plan to have them available for sale by spring 2018 and enquiries are now being taken.

Look out for the PUCMug in your local coffee shop, and if it is not there, ask them why not!